Showing 1-24 of 92 items found in Arts & Culture

Anderson Japanese Gardens has been named one of the highest quality Japanese gardens in North America by Sukiya Living Magazine since 2004. Inspired by calm and tranquility, this 12 acre award winning landscape is comprised of koi-filled ponds, winding paths, gentle streams, cascading waterfalls, raked gravel gardens, beautifully trained pines, and more. Master craftsmanship and 16th century traditional architecture is found throughout the garden.

Come explore Burpee Museum and its award-winning exhibits such as Jane: Diary of a Dinosaur, called one of the ten most important dinosaur discoveries in the past 100 years. Burpee Museum also features Homer, a sub-adult or "teen-age" Triceratops. Four floors of exhibits include Windows to Wilderness, a woolly mammoth skeletal cast, Pennsylvanian coal forest, a Native American exhibit, Geoscience, and a viewing lab.

See a play or musical performance at the wonderfully ornate Coronado Performing Arts Center, which was once a 1920s movie palace and vaudeville hall. The Coronado still features its original whimsical details, such as gilded Spanish castles, Chinese dragons in relief on the walls and a faux starry sky. Coronado Performing Arts Center is the venue for many performing arts groups and traveling shows.

Tinker Swiss Cottage is a historic house museum located in the heart of Rockford, Illinois. The museum complex contains the historic house museum, barn, and carriage house from the Tinker family. In addition, the property is the home of the founding site of Rockford and contains a Pre-Columbian Native American conical mound. Robert Tinker's inspiration for the Cottage came during his tour of Europe in 1862, where he fell in love with the architecture of Switzerland. In 1865, Robert began building his Swiss Cottage on the limestone bluff overlooking Kent Creek.Robert surrounded his Swiss Cottage with over 27 acres of trees, vines, winding pathways, flowerbeds, and gardens. A three-story Swiss inspired barn was added to the property which housed cows, chickens, and horses.

Located in Northwestern Illinois, near Oregon and Rockford, White Pines Inn resembles a pioneer village with 25 authentic one-room log cabins with gas fireplaces. Set among the towering pines, the cabins have beautiful hardwood floors the color of maple syrup. Each cabin has a queen, hand-hewn log bed with a double bed trundle underneath, and a private bath. There are 13 one-room cabins with open-beamed ceilings. There are 12 additional cabins built in groups of four under one roof.

The museum campus consists of a Victorian village with 26 historical buildings filled with artifacts of the era as well as several beautiful 19th century gardens that depict life in northern Illinois from 1890 to 1910. Interpreters in authentic period dress are available seasonally for guided tours. The main museum building holds large group meeting rooms and exhibit space with a number of permanent exhibits reflecting Rockford's history and culture. Special events throughout the year include a World War II re-enatment, Sock Monkey and Scarecrow Harvest Festivals, and more. Free recreational path located on property.

Named one of the top 12 children's museums in the nation by Forbes in 2012, here kids can explore more than 250 hands-on art and science exhibits, a planetarium, TV studio and the Tot Spot for toddlers. Discovery Center also boasts the nation's first community-built outdoor science park, the Rock River Discovery Park, featuring a two-story maze, water play area and dinosaur fossil dig.

The area's oldest outdoor summer theatre with four musical productions in June and July. Starlight's home, the Bengt Sjostrom Theatre, features more than a thousand seats, a stunningly artistic and creative retractable roof, new seating and an improved stage. Starlight Theatre has been named one of Illinois' 150 Great Places by the American Institute of Architects, Illinois Council. This prestigious award is given to places that have been identified by leading architects as contributing to their communities' quality of life.

Kryptonite is a live, original music venue specializing in Elite Craft Beers, customer service, signature cocktails, a sweet patio, Stand Up Comedy on Tuesdays, Trivia on Wednesdays, BARGO on Thursdays and so much more.

The Egyptian Theatre hosts film festivals, special movie screenings, and live entertainment events. This theatre is a 1929, fully restored Egyptian Art Deco movie palace and is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. The Egyptian is also available for rentals, tours, weddings, graduations, parties and receptions. Capacity: 1,419 Raised stage with dressing room below; balcony and lobby space.

Bea Gurler was nine years old when her father George moved his family into the house in 1893. Her cousins, the children of her father’s brother Henry, had been living since 1888 in the Ellwood Mansion. Everyone said it was magnificent. Bea’s parents George and Zillah, evidently shared a taste in homes that favored the elegance of simplicity. It was the unimposing yet dignified structure on Pine Street–where the back door was always open. George and Henry Gurler were both prominent businessmen, and joint owners of a number of dairies. They quickly became world-famous and respected by many dairy farmers. Bea eventually made it a goal of hers to renovate The Gurler House to be the home that she once new and loved. The Gurler House hosts an annual Folk Music Festival every summer, where people are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets to enjoy the music. While you are at The Gurler House, make sure to take a walk through their beautiful garden.

Come tour the Northern Illinois University, catch a show preformed by their Theatre or Dance department, or explore one of their Art Galleries. There is much to do on campus including their new Anthropology Museum, an Observatory, the Huskies Den or take in a game! Their Museums are free to visit, some fees may apply for shows or School of Music Concerts. There is never a dull moment on campus!

Since 1884, the Mendelssohn Performing Arts Center (MPAC) has been offering exciting, personal, interactive music experiences to the northern Illinois area. MPAC presents several exciting concert series with local, national and internationally-renowned performers, from genres including classical, jazz, folk and Broadway.

Malta is home to the "first seedling mile" on the Lincoln Highway. As one of the 16 Interpretive Gazebos located along the Lincoln Highway, the Malta gazebo offers a unique way for visitors to enjoy stories of the early Lincoln Highway and its Illinois communities.

More than 70 historic autos including presidential limousines, Al Capone's car and movie cars such as the Batmobile, PLUS hundreds of "pieces of history" and constantly changing exhibits make this museum a step above the standard auto museum.

Rockford's downtown arena hosts a variety of world-class entertainment, including concerts, circuses, rodeos and family shows. The BMO Harris Bank Center is also home to the Rockford IceHogs, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Rockford Symphony Orchestra has been serving Northern Illinois since 1934 and has a strong tradition of presenting classical and contemporary orchestral music of the highest caliber in Rockford's beautiful and awe-inspiring Coronado Theatre. Nationally known guest artists frequently serve as soloists for RSO concerts, adding tremendous variety and diversity to each season. In addition to a wonderful array of Classics and Pops Concerts, each season the Rockford Symphony also presents The Nutcracker in collaboration with the Rockford Dance Company.